Career Development

Over the years as a manager and leader and lately as a mentor, I have often had people ask me how they should develop their careers — sometimes more bluntly as in “How do I get promoted?” My answer has changed over the years as experience and my mentors have influenced my thinking.

A disclaimer first: My only experience is with what I would call incremental career development. There are people who are exceptional in talent, intellect or opportunity who take a more dramatic route — people like Elon Musk, Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg. I’ll leave those stories for the biographers and stick to what I know.

One scenario for accelerated promotion that I do recognize is when entrepreneurs build a growing company as CEO or CTO and then get acquired by a big company. These people often get VP or better positions in the big company, sometimes at a pretty young age. But this is certainly not an easy route — they have really earned it!

When you start thinking about career development, it is best to first step back a bit and ask yourself what you are really looking for. I think we all get seduced from time to time by the rampant tendency to value ourselves by how much money we make. Resist this trap with all your might. I highly recommend spending 13 minutes watching the Ted talk by Robert Waldinger, the current Director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, which is one of the most comprehensive longitudinal studies in history. The study he is reporting on has run for 75 years, following a large group of men (sorry, it started 75 years ago) and has found that the common pattern for long, healthy and happy lives is maintaining strong healthy relationships. Nothing about money or position there, right?

Okay, so let’s not let our ambition at work get in the way of building and maintaining strong and healthy relationships. But, we can still strive for fulfillment at work. So, what is fulfilling or motivating in our work? I can’t speak for everyone, obviously, but Daniel Pink has used 50 years of behavioural science to overturn conventional wisdom on human motivation. His TED Talk on the science of motivation is one of the 10 most-watched TED Talks of all time. Rather than money, the key motivators are Purpose, Autonomy and Mastery (I remember this with the acronym PAM which reminds me of my good friend and a highly motivated worker.)

Purpose: connecting your work with a greater purpose, whether it is the vision of the company, improving lives or making the world a better place.

Autonomy: having enough control over your work that, within reasonable bounds, you can make the decisions (and be held accountable.)

Mastery: continuously learning and advancing your knowledge and skills.

If these motivators ring true to you, don’t ask “How can I get promoted?” but rather “How can I achieve greater purpose, autonomy and mastery?” You can certainly pursue these three dimensions as a solo pursuit, but try to engage the help of your manager. If, when you raise the topic, your manager gives you a look like this:

it may be time to find a new manager.

When I have discussed career development with people over the years, I have placed little emphasis on the dust-gathering “Career Development Plan” and instead emphasized the “next meaningful challenge.”

This is a task or project, sized appropriately for the person, and aligned with their short or long-term aspirations. It is better for the identification of the challenge to come from the employee than from the manager. Not only does this contribute to alignment with interests but the exercise of identifying a need contributes to the development itself.

The manager and employee should make sure the purpose is well understood and appreciated, clarify the boundaries of autonomy for the activity, and explicitly align the knowledge and skill acquisition with interests. The manager should provide needed support.

This approach is a win-win for the person (satisfaction and a bullet on their résumé) and for the company (a useful delivery and an engaged employee). Of course, once completed, then it is time for the “next meaningful challenge.” This is a much more stepping-stone approach that suits most (especially younger) people better than developing and following a formal plan. Longer term goals will emerge over time.

If you have genuinely tried to pursue PAM in your current position to no avail then it is certainly time to look elsewhere. Your career and motivation will stagnate under these conditions.

Career development will also benefit from two other strategies. First, seek out mentors whether they are part of a formal company program or informal, inside or outside the company. Take your time to find a good potential mentor (ask others!) and then muster your courage and just ask. In most cases the potential mentor will be flattered to be asked and will be glad to help.

Second, often ask for feedback. Even better, ask for advice. Ask your manager, your peers, people who report to you and anyone else who you work with. Be specific in your request: “I’m hoping to become more effective at running meetings — do you have any advice for me?” When you receive feedback, listen carefully, take notes and then say “Thank you!” Avoid any critique or defensive postures. Marshall Goldsmith, widely recognized and my favourite leadership coach, does a wonderful video on this subject.

In summary, make sure you:

• know what you are pursuing,
• don’t do it at the cost of important relationships,
• seek Purpose, Autonomy and Mastery (PAM),
• move on when your current company can no longer help you,
• focus on the next meaningful challenge, letting the grand plan emerge over time,
• take advantage of a variety of mentors, and,
• seek advice often.

I’d love to hear comments from folks that are at various stages of their careers. Is this useful and does it make sense? What has your experience been?